The Science of Children Birth to Age 8: Deepening and Broadening the Foundation for Success – New Committee Announced

The Department of Health and Human Services has teamed up with the Department of Education and key players in the philanthropic community to fund a study titled “The Science of Children Birth to Age 8: Deepening and Broadening the Foundation for Success.” The study, executed via The National Academies, will result in a consensus report on how the science of children’s health, learning, and development from birth to age 8 can inform how we prepare a workforce to seamlessly support children’s development and education, including standards and expectations, instructional practices, preparation and professional development, and family engagement across diverse contexts (e.g., rural/urban) and populations (e.g., immigrant children, dual language learners, children at risk for developmental delays and disabilities).

The Institute of Medicine has just announced the new committee appointed to examine how the science of child development can inform how we prepare adults who provide services, programs, and education to children birth to age 8 to seamlessly support their health, development, learning, and school success.

The committee will meet several times over the course of a year and will convene two public workshops, tentatively planned for February 2014 in Washington, DC and April 2014 in Irvine, California. The committee will issue a consensus report of their findings, conclusion, and recommendations; this report is anticipated for release in early 2015.